Combat
Overview Basically the Fallen Earth combat system is balanced with the following goals in mind: # If a guy with a rifle attacks someone a decent ways out (10+ meters or so) the rifle guy wins. # If a melee guy attacks someone with a rifle who is close by (10 meters or less) the melee guy wins. Rifle users suffer a penalty to their Evade skill when attacked in melee, meaning melee combatants can really chew up rifle users if they get in close. # Pistols can be used in both ranged and melee combat. They are sort of the middle range, doing the least damage overall but having the most flexibility in their use. The developers have tried to create a combat system that favors certain types of combat in different environments, and to provide enough of these different environment so each combat skill gets its fair share of being effective. For example, on the open areas of the Plateau a good crossbow (which falls under Rifle skill) will trump most other weapons since it's pretty easy to see your enemies a good ways off. In the depths of Kaibab Forest or one of the many caves that dot the Grand Canyon Province, melee weapons will be more useful since fights will be more up close and personal. Pistols again are useful in both situations, but are not as powerful. So essentially, for a melee character to beat a rifle character on open ground, he has to get close to the rifle character without being hit. This is where the Escape Artist skills come into play. While players may have lots of abilities available to them at any given time, most players will probably stick within using the same 8-14 abilities in most situations. You can attack most folks any time you want, with a few exceptions: # You can only attack other players in PvP zones, where you can attack anyone not in your squad. The inability to attack members of your group only applies to attacks using the reticle that are a hit/miss situation, such as normal weapon strikes. # You can't attack neutral town guards or guards of your faction normally; you have to use an ability like Melee Smash to make them hostile. This is to prevent accidental friendly fire against guards who may get in your way during fights, causing them to turn on you. You can attack guards of enemy factions without restriction. Hit Determination When a player enters aim mode (which is done by clicking on the middle mouse wheel or F2), the character raises their weapons as if ready to use them and a target reticle appears in the center of the screen. When in third-person mode, the view is an over-the-shoulder camera with the reticle always staying in the center of the screen. Moving the mouse around moves the reticle and the screen view. The reticle changes size based on movement, stance, etc. Also automatic fire causes the reticle to jump around. When you fire a weapon it chooses a random point in the reticle as the point the attack hits; thus, the larger the reticle, the less predictable your aim. If that chosen point is a creature, that creature is hit. This means that it’s usually easier to hit in melee than ranged combat since the target takes up so much more of your screen. Hit Location Where you hit your target affects the damage you inflict. Head shots inflict more damage, while limb hits inflict less damage. The damage modification is generally in the +/-25% range. Weapon Damage Each weapon has a damage number and type associated with it, so a Wood Board may do 30 points of Crushing damage while a Zip Gun may do 12 points of Ballistics damage. Fairly weak weapons like corkscrews and pipes do around 5-30 points of damage depending on speed and whether it’s one- or two-handed. Most melee weapons inflict around 20-60 points of damage per attack, while more advanced weapons like top-end axes and swords can do upwards of 100 points of damage. Zip guns start out inflicting around 10 points of damage and crossbows around 40 (you can fire zip guns much, much faster than crossbows). Most pistols and sub-machine guns do in the 30-50 damage range, while rifles are generally in the 40-60 range, except for shotguns and bolt-action rifles like hunting and sniper rifles, which do substantially more damage. Dodge / Melee Damage Once the hit is determined, the attacker’s skill is compared with the defender’s skill, with Rifle/Pistol compared with Dodge, and Melee compared with Melee Defense. On a sliding scale, this can increase or decrease damage by up to 20% and increase the chance for a critical hit by a similar margin. Armor / Armor Usage Taking the damage number from the skill calculation, the defender's armor is factored in. Each character has resistance ratings for twelve types of damage (Slashing, Crushing, Piercing, Ballistic, Fire, Cold, Poison, Disease, Acid, Radiation, Sonic, Psionic, and Electric). Resistances are determined both by armor worn and by effects on the character such as special abilities, mutations, or usable items. The resistance rating and the character’s Armor Use skill are plugged into a formula that can result in up to a 60% damage reduction. Damage Application The damage number from the Armor/Armor Use calculation is subtracted from the player's hit points. Related Articles * PvP * Escape Artist References Category:Main Category